Nets Hand Denver First Home Loss
After waltzing through a rather painless matchup with the Phoenix Suns in the desert on Wednesday night, a far more formidable challenge awaited the Brooklyn Nets as they continued their four-game West coast swing.
The Brooklyn Nets defeated the Denver Nuggets 112-110 on Friday night at the Pepsi Center to win their third consecutive game.
Caris LeVert wanted the shot, and he got it. The third-year guard sunk a go-ahead, game-winning basket with 0.3 seconds remaining in the game as Brooklyn sent the Nuggets to back-to-back losses for the first time this season.
LeVert finished with 17 points, five assists, one steal and one block in the Nets huge road victory in the Mile-High City.
It’s the second game-winning shot for LeVert this season, who hit a game-winner vs the New York Knicks back in Brooklyn’s home opener in a 107-105 win at the Barclays Center.
D’Angelo Russell would score a team-high 23 points while recording five assists, four rebounds and two steals. He also scored seven points in the fourth quarter.
Operating by committee with five players once again reaching double figures, the Brooklyn Nets were steady on offense and tough on defense as they continued to grind their way to victory.
The Nets owned a 14-point lead in this game early in the first half and were in control for the half before the Nuggets made a second half push to make it a tight affair.
Nikola Jokic was a one-man wrecking crew against the Brooklyn Nets as he took second-year center Jarrett Allen to school for much of the game.
Typically a passer as he came in averaging a team-high 7.4 assists, the Denver big man played with a chip on his shoulder as he scored 37 points while grabbing 21 rebounds, making up for Denver getting less than efficient production from their starting guards Jamal Murray and Gary Harris.
The game was nearly lost at the free throw line by the Brooklyn Nets as the Denver Nuggets attempted 20 free throws in the fourth quarter while the Nets had a stretch of two empty trips at the free throw line with the game hanging in the balance late.
The Denver Nuggets out-rebounded the Brooklyn Nets 54-42 while holding them to 40.9 percent shooting from the field, but it would not be enough as the Nets edge in 3-point shooting and playmaking late proved to be the difference.
DeMarre Carroll made his season debut for the Nets after missing the first 11 games of the season with an ankle injury.
In his return, Carroll gave Brooklyn a boost off the bench defensively while scoring nine points in 14 minutes.
Offensive balance is what coach Kenny Atkinson preaches, and he got that tonight along with his team being able to defend everyone except Nikola Jokic on the night.
While Jarrett Allen took his lumps from the Serbian, the second-year big man finished with a season-high 18 points to go along with nine rebounds while tying his career-high with five blocks.
A big victory to be sure vs a Denver team that came in 9-2 and 6-0 at home, it’s a further confidence booster for Brooklyn, who continue to show they can play with just about every team they’ve faced this season.
The Brooklyn Nets (6-6) only won three games in a row once last year, evidence that this is a much improved team in 2018 as they got back to .500.
The Brooklyn Nets will continue their road trip with a visit to Oracle Arena to face the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night.
What are your thoughts on the Brooklyn Nets victory in Denver on Friday night? Leave your comments below!